Rickard Locke
Rickard 'Rick' Locke is a veteran Brother of the Night's Watch, having served for two-and-twenty years. Starting off as a lowly steward, Rick has climbed his way through the ranks of the Watch and garnered much respect along the way. Rick is the current Commander of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, one of the three Castles still garrisoned by the Night's Watch, and was a strong contender to be the Watch's 1001st Lord Commander. Known for his grim determination and lead-by-example attitude, Rick is a man of action. He much prefers to take matters into his own hands than let the task fall to any other man. Appearance Standing at 5'10" tall, with a slim and sinewy build. His hair is a light shade of brown and is long and rather unkempt, and his eyes are hazel. A once handsome face is now decorated with more than a handful of scars, some more recent than others. His chest, if ever visible, is distinguished by a long scar, running from below his right shoulder to just above the left of his hip. History Rickard was born in 365 AC, to Eddard Locke - the younger brother of Lord Ethan Locke of Oldcastle and the last of seven children. His mother passed suddenly from illness towards the end of the very same year, and his father was quick to follow. Whilst Rickard and his siblings were taken in by Lord Locke as they were his own blood, they all suffered for it. Some of his siblings died young, but Rickard was a born survivor. He eventually turned to common thievery when he was eleven and, whilst initially he was successful thanks to his childish innocence, he was caught by a guard in a nearby village to Oldcastle. The guard gave him the choice of his hands or the Black, as a recruiter was in the area had offered a few coins for every recruit brought. Rick hastily accepted to join so as to keep his hands, and was whisked away before his family ever knew what had happened. At Castle Black, Rickard adapted well. The life offered by the Night's Watch was little different from that he had been living, and he was grateful for having been spared losing his hands. He showed promise in martial training, but due to his young age he was assigned to the Stewards after he spoke the oath at the Godswood beyond the Wall. He spent four years as a glorified errand boy for many senior watchmen, from the Maester to the Lord Commander himself. All the while he trained, honed his martial skills, improved his physical fitness, and waited to ask to transfer to the Rangers. In this time he took to the simple nickname Rick, rarely using his House name, and began to flourish with great-swords despite his gaunt frame. In 380 AC Rick was reassigned to the Rangers, and sent to Eastwatch-by-the-sea where they were lacking after some costly encounters north of the Wall. Over the course of nine years Rick proved himself time and again to his Black Brothers, he rose quickly through the ranks, leading his first Ranging party in 386 AC. Amongst the members of his party was Ser Jon Storm, a well meaning bastard who sought to find his honour at the Wall and beyond. The two became fast friends, and Jon would serve alongside Rick for the majority of the next twelve years. As Mamon Longshanks gathers his forces to attack the Wall, Rick and his party scouted the Wildling throng. He personally delivered his report to the Lord Commander, who ultimately dismissed it as fantasy and took no action. When Mamon Longshanks actually did attack, Rick hid his anger at the Lord Commander's ignorance and helped the Stark's repel the invaders. He lost many good men, silently blaming the Lord Commander, and retired quickly to Eastwatch with the survivors once the Wildling threat had ended. The previous Commander of Eastwatch, Rodrick Rhysling, was slain in the fighting and surprisingly Rickard Locke was named his successor at the turn of 391 AC. Following his unexpected rise to Command, Rick set his focus on combating the Wildling threat aggressively. He hoped to crush many clans in the aftermath of the defeat of the latest King-Beyond-the-Wall but his efforts proved challenging, and he suffered many setbacks. In late 393 AC Rick, along with his entire ranging party, failed to report back to Eastwatch when expected. Jon Storm, briefly acting as Commander at Eastwatch, mourned his friend and sent word to Castle Black of the missing Commander. However, at the turn of 394 AC, Rick returned alone. He told a tale of a Wildling raid, being hunted through the Haunted Forest for weeks, and losing all of his brothers to various fates. Rick then spent a few months recovering, and his once youthful visage was lost forever - his eyes seemed to retreat a little into his skull thanks to his constantly dour facial expression from a myriad of facial scars, and his light brown hair became speckled with grey strands. The incident doesn't break Rick though, and he returns beyond the Wall with a grim resolve. His luck didn't change though, and in 396 AC his eight man patrol was ambushed again by Wildlings. Outnumbered three to one, Rick ordered a hasty retreat but only Jon Storm made it clear of the encroaching enemy. Jon stuck around only long enough to witness a hulking figure seemingly cut Rick down with an axe, before making for the Wall. The blow in truth had only wounded Rick, but he was knocked unconscious when he fell on a rock from the force of the blow. Once again Jon reported Rick missing, and once again Rick returned alive to the surprise of all. Rick would suffer again in 397 AC, when a snowstorm separated him and Jon from the remainder of their party whilst deep in the Haunted Forest and across Antler River. Stranded too far north to risk heading back in the storm, Rick and Jon decided to wait it out. During their stay they were attacked by a vicious bear, both men suffered multiple injuries before they slew the beast. Jon was left with permanent facial disfigurement and would most likely have died were it not for Rick's innate survival skills, instead the pair returned to Eastwatch alive. With news of the Lord Commander's death, Rick headed to Castle Black to personally announce his candidacy. His disdain for the previous Commander never wavered and he saw few others as worthy of the position. Recent Events Despite his wariness of many Brothers who were nominated to be Lord Commander, Rick was quick to rally behind Baelor Sunglass after his triumph. Baelor's reputation as First Ranger had won him much support, and enabled him to see off a spirited challenge by First Builder Donnel Trant. Following the election of the 1001st Lord Commander, Rick used his influence to take charge of a scouting mission to Hardhome. He put much more stock in his Eastwatch rangers, and believed the mission was too important to be trusted to another man. Veteran Brother Sykregg joined the mission, along with twenty Castle Black rangers, and the party set out earnestly to meet with ten more rangers travelling from Eastwatch. The ten Eastwatch rangers never made it to the rendezvous point, and a captured wildling claimed they had all been killed in their sleep. Following the wildling's confession, Rick and his men ambushed a small pack of wildlings that had been spying upon them and put them all to the sword after a swift interrogation. At this point Rick sent the Castle Black rangers home, stating that the mission was too dangerous for 'green boys and old cripples'. Rick's remaining men were spotted by wildlings upon arrival at Hardhome, but he was able to gather valuable intelligence about the size of Rogar's forces and the number of tribes sworn to his cause. Rogar tasked forty men with hunting down Commander Rick and his men, but the Night's Watch's horses gave them an early lead on their pursuers. Believing that the horses were soon going to be more of a hindrance than a help, Rick sent Long-Necked Leo and Ser Pate off as a distraction - hoping to draw the wildlings off the rest of the party's tracks. This didn't go exactly as planned but proved successful nonetheless, Leo and Pate were unexpectedly able to make it back to Eastwatch on the lighter horses and drew some of the wildlings away from the main group. The rest of the wildlings, under command of Rogar's chief runner - Torgund - caught up with the Rick and his men later that day. Outnumbered near three to one and with nowhere left to run, Rick and his eight men made their stand. Each Brother fought like a man possessed, striking down wildling after wildling, and when the dust settled there was not a single wildling left standing. Of the ranging party though, only Rick and Sykregg remained standing - whilst Ser Byron Vance did survive the battle, he was killed by Rick in a final act of mercy. The Commander and Sykregg returned to Castle Black to deliver the report firsthand, upon their return they were greeted by the odd sight of all the Northmen that Galbart Glover had brought to help protect the Wall. Timeline * 365 - Born to a huge Locke family, his mother dies later that year. * 376 - Caught thieving aged eleven, takes the black rather than lose his hands. * 376 - Initially assigned to the stewards, he is a glorified errand boy. * 380 - Transfers to the Rangers of Eastwatch at age fifteen, takes part in his first ranging. * 389 - Witnesses gathering wildlings preparing to attack the Wall. His reports are ignored by the ageing Lord Commander. * 390 - Survives Wildling attack led by Mamon Longshanks, he keeps concerns regarding leadership to himself. * 391 - Rick is named Commander of Eastwatch. * 392 to 397 - Rick has numerous incidents whilst ranging beyond the Wall, despite being wounded numerous times he recovers quickly. * 398 - He leads a small contingent of men from Eastwatch to Castle Black to support his candidacy for Lord Commander. He is ultimately defeated by Baelor Sunglass. Quotes * ''"Night gathers, Brothers, and Commander Rick is the right man to lead us through it." - ''Ser Jon Storm when nominating Rickard for 1001st Lord Commander. * ''"Alright then you big bastard, when you meet your Gods tell them Rickard Locke sent you!" - ''Rick to Rogar Longshanks. * ''"Locke has always been more a ranger than a commander." - ''Lord Commander Sunglass to Ser Ryam Shawney. * ''"Let it be said that I would never ask you to do something I wouldn't do myself, for I put myself forward as well." - Rick, addressing his men during the escape from Hardhome. Supporting Characters * '''Ser Jon Storm' - Gift: Agility, Negative: Deformed - Bastard of Rain House, a prominent Ranger at Eastwatch and close friend from his old ranging party. Jon is the only survivor from those days, and a staunch ally. Injured in the attack on a bandit camp led by Willum Stark, but well on the road to recovery. Ordered to remain at Castle Black by Rick, rather than join the Hardhome mission. * Acting-Commander Ethan - Gift: Duellist - Rick's personal aide, a recent addition to the Stewards but a gifted fighter too. Temporarily acted as Commander of Eastwatch in Rick's absence. Last seen leading men to rendezvous with Commander Locke for the Hardhome mission, reported KIA. * Ser Byron 'Bramblebane' Vance of Atranta '- Gift: None, Negative: Maimed (Leg) - 'Veteran' Eastwatch Ranger, during an ambush upon a pack of wildlings Byron fell into a vinebush and received various painful cuts across his face. When Locke's party was caught by wildling trappers, Byron was maimed by a wildling axe forcing Commander Locke to amputate his leg. He died with Rick's knife deep in his heart, an act of mercy to end his suffering. ''Never Forget. * '''Ser Ryam Shawney - Gift: Voice - Veteran Eastwatch Ranger, and survivor of the Hardhome mission. Currently at Castle Black with Ser Jon. * Acting-Commander 'Long-Necked' Leo - Gift: Towering - Veteran Eastwatch Ranger, and survivor of the Hardhome mission. Currently acting as Commander of Eastwatch until the Lord Commander appoints an official one or Locke returns alive. Category:The Night's Watch Category:Northerner Category:House Locke